How I finally sharpened a chisel

Using a honing guide to sharpen a chisel on a diamond stone.

[@StrawberriesSugar69]

I could fall asleep to this man every night 😭😭 he's so warm and gentle sounding

[@ambergray5771]

Audiobook, take me on a tour, Big man ❤

[@space-3415]

Sounds like the narrorator on stanely parable and I am here for it

[@snap.-_-]

His voice makes my blood pressure high

[@Geilolp.]

Gay

[@ChestersonJack]

@@space-3415Because they both have some type of British accent?

[@lindboknifeandtool]

The key to ultimate sharpness is method of burr removal. You tore it off which works fine, but fatiguing it with strops with compound or on ceramic can help shrink the burr. Also, not even making one in the first place works best, and makes the strongest longest lasting edge. Cut perpendicular into the stone a few swipes and then sharpen strokes until you make the smallest noticeable burr, or none at all. Magnification helps, and a microfiber cloth helps feel for the micro wire edge. Also none of this matters and your result was great anyway. Nerd stuff.

[@yuvalhuck5437]

Quite interesting, the idea of no burr sharpening

[@sethgaston8347]

Tldr; Get a strop. I agree.

[@greensheen8759]

@@sethgaston8347 I just strop with a plastic cutting board. it works really well

[@grinnbearit8427]

Any links to sharpener learning? I wanna buy a good oil whetstone. Only because it's what I learnt and was taught. If there's better methods or.advice love to hear

[@marcuscrowell6964]

​@grinnbearit8427 Outdoors55 is great for learning to sharpen, burr formation and removal, and has good recommendations for all kinds of sharpening stones. They've helped me out a lot

[@heinzdoofenshmirtz2385]

Alternative title: Man edges his tool after years of not edging

[@user-xm5dd5ju4q]

Wild

[@trankked6672]

The perfect edge

[@_teker]

Man strokes his tool after years of not edging

[@mistersmarteleimon1500]

edging his chisel with the perfect stroke 😳

[@Mike-om4tv]

Diabolical

[@justin-tv3pc]

important thing to mention is to make sure the chisel is absolutely square to jig or else you get a crooked edge.

[@rolo1222345]

Hey man, I always love watching your vids at night. Youve got a great soothing and calming voice, not to mention crazy carpentry skill too👍🏻👌🏽

[@boreoff]

Glad you like them, many thanks 🙏

[@iggysixx]

Personally, I would flatten out the back too (just a couple sideways strokes after doing the angled part should be more than plenty if you've flattened it before. I found that that step significantly increases the sharpness). And then use the inside of an old leather belt + a few drops of simple handy oil to remove the burrs. (Not a 'professional grade' strop with stropping compound to polish it... Going for function, not making a makeup mirror ;)). Just a few strokes backside and frontside. Works very well, _and_ you've simultaneously lightly oiled the bare metal, preventing rust from forming. I found this works very well, even with the cheapest aluminium oxide dual sided sharpening stones you can find (the ones that are €3~4 euro at any hardware store). You know the ones.. I believe they're like 150 and 400-ish grit. I always manage to get a razor sharp edge using this method :) *[Those cheap stones also function quite well as flattening / dressing stones. You'll wear them out quite fast, but it's - once again - the cheapest option :)] Anyways - I know that everyone has an opinion on doing it 'better'. But cheaper... Not so much, right? ;) * still need to find me a honing guide under €10.. I've wanted one for awhile now, but the cheap ones all seem to have obvious flaws ;/ -- Cool channel btw. I like the different camera angles, so I can properly see what you're doing Cheers from Amsterdam

[@iggysixx]

*Good lighting setup too, by the way :)

[@boreoff]

thanks for you comments, I made a strop out of plywood and leather but a belt will do....yes good to check the back is flat for sure. That chisel arrived flat but not always the case...cheers

[@OriginalCatfish42]

Ive made my own honing guides from scrap wood, just cut it at a 30° angle, cut some groves on one side for the chisel to lay inbetween and some groves on the side that touches the stone so the water can escape. Might not be perfect but better result than freehanding it! Its just a little ghetto, should probably just get the real thing!

[@TGFMusic]

My dad just gave me this exact thing a couple months back. I resharpened all my chisels and they work great.

[@stonelion99]

I've always sharpened the majority of my chisels on a sander. As long as you get the angle right and get rid of the burr, you're good to go. That being said, getting the angle right is a lot easier said than done.

[@steveeymann6374]

No... just no...

[@stonelion99]

@@steveeymann6374 I'm not using them for detailed work, just bulk removal stuff. I have a nice set that I sharpen with diamond plates, but I don't need to put that much time and effort into my crap chisels.

[@JgHaverty]

Hats off to those that have spent the literal years dedicating themselves to this particular skill set. That said, its just too easy to use a honing guide nowadays. For the consistency and ease of using, its arguable if learning to free hand is even worth it for 99% of wood workers. Setting up a jig and having a station for everything streamlines the process to a point nearly identical to just free handing it. Stropping keeps the edge longer and you can free hand that with no issues.

[@formes2388]

I have a honing guide, 3/4 of the time I'm not sure where it is, and end up sharping the edge by hand. I don't know why - but I've never found keeping the edge square and flat difficult. It might be that I default to having the sharpening stone at an angle - akin to writing on a peace of paper which makes it easier to have fluid straight motion of arm without needing to bend the elbow? - and to my understanding, that is the most likely place an angle is going to be altered from.

[@JgHaverty]

@@formes2388 for me, I have trouble rounding over smaller chisels pretty badly. Too much torque or im moving too fast lol. It's just not a skill set im interested in the investment when I have tools available to do the same job lol.

[@steveeymann6374]

Freehand is just a flex and no one can do it perfectly every time. I've been doing chisel work for years and literally no one will care if you use a guide. They will care however if you use sandpaper instead of proper stones because it's stupid and ineffective.

[@BarginsGalore]

a honing guide is good for being but after a few months with the guide it was so easy to switch to freehand because the guide was training my hand to hold the chisel in the right angle. now i can get it razor sharp in about as long as it took to put the guide on

[@yourworstnightmare6513]

that honing guide will be sharper than the chisel at some point

[@casualrider6045]

That's what I been thinking lol

[@themetaphysicalaxe5506]

Man I install doors at work alot and I've got some chisels is use all the time that need sharpening I'm trying this.

[@aaron6841]

You should strop the edge to remove the burr and refine the edge.

[@boreoff]

Correct I do that for finer work 🤙but this is good enough for most work, cheers

[@miles11we]

I only strop with compound for carving tools. For me it's way better to maintain a straight bevel (hollow ground in the middle just to reduce sharpening time) instead of convex one like you get with stropping or micro bevel chicanery. Most of the time just touch it to a 8k stone for a few seconds and go.

[@indalcecio]

​@@miles11we Stropping won't meaningfully change the geometry of your edge.

[@miles11we]

@indalcecio it changes how it feels and cuts, regardless of how minimal it looks after stropping for a while. Just go from an unstropped one to one you have been doing most of your touchups with stropping for a while. The difference is very easy to feel and makes accurate cuts harder. Noticed it when using a coworkers chisels that were maintained like that

[@BennysUnhinged]

​@@miles11weyou notice 0.10mm or less differences by hand? 🤡🤡🤡

[@notlistening6499]

Your voice is very soothing

[@bluedistortions]

Tip: To get it razor sharp, all you need now is a leather strop with some diamond paste. After the sharpening, wipe it back and forth 10 times and youll be good. Even with a perfect stroke, the edge wont really shine until the burr is dealt with equally well.

[@ems8357]

your voice is so calm 🥺

[@kolafluffarts1771]

That's a gorgeous bit of iron ya got there, live the color

[@samuelmuentes]

Great stuff right here. The wisdom some of us need.

[@Sporkball]

Goddamn, your voice it’s just so calming

[@ShelbyDinglechalk]

I love watching this man edge

[@YourDreamWoman664]

The perfect edge can only be achieved by stroking perfectly

[@gavinlundquist4287]

Leather strop will give it a beautiful razor finish. Put some compound on it and pull backwards on the bevel and the backside of the edge. It will wiggle the burr back and forth until it comes off clean.

[@da54177]

Dragging the edge through end grain can work to remove the burr, but it doesn't give the best result. If you wajt your edge as sharp as possible, and much more durable, you should take backward passes on the stone, alternating between the front and back if the bevel, continuing until you've eliminated the burr completely. This is called apexing. If you want something even sharper than that, go to a strop with compound.

[@Frostbyte45]

If Walter White decided to become a carpenter:

[@ButterflyMatt]

I’m glad you found an extra tool to help you do what you couldn’t figure out before. But it’s not necessary.

[@codename495]

If you cannot achieve your goal without a tool, but you can with the tool it pretty well meets the definition of “ necessary” dont you think?

[@okYisisyis]

Thank you for showing me how to stroke my chisel and have a perfect and long lasting edge

[@bobleney1247]

Hello! My name is Dr. Glenn Pierce, and i would like to talk more about angles.

[@Luk4zguy97]

The angle is changing because youre rubbing it back and forth -> because the pressure balance is changing between forward and backward strokes. You can get a consistent angle if you only do pulling strokes making sure to carefully lay the tip on for each stroke. Freehand is phenomenal, but you cant rush it.

[@spudpud-T67]

Free hand is fine. You will find the beginners all get a guide then soon never use it as they get better and just free hand.

[@virgindeluxe5901]

His voice reminds me of Dr. Glenn Pierce. Very pleasant

[@nic2097]

Instead of running it through the end grain, just rub it flat on the wet stone. This might work better

[@Britishmilkbag]

Some people would still call you a femboy for wearing a kilt he’s not he’s a man the toughest around but the gentlest

[@spazmcat3853]

Can you make a video of you reading any book, i think that would help a lot of people sleep with you smooth voice

[@Weldoholic]

I was gonna talk shit about how your chisel doesn’t need to be that sharp until I saw the wood. Don’t mind me I’m just a welder 😂😂😂

[@TheIamfrustrated]

I have the utmost respect for the people that can pull off free hand sharpening as I to use jigs for my sharpening specifically the Edge Pro Apex with the scissors attachment.

[@miles11we]

Don't give up, I have the shakiest hands of anyone you might know and I still freehand most everything and get great results. I rough hollow grind most everything tho, so when I take it to the stones I have very stable registration with the tip and the heel of the bevel. I just kinda rock it back a bit to feel it sit down on the stone, lock that angle into my hands and start going to town, stopping every once in a while to make sure I haven't strayed from my angle. Super duper easy with thick plane irons and chisels or when you have a shallow bevel angle. I struggle a bit with my couple or crappy thin chisels i keep at 45° cause the bevel is so small.

[@TheIamfrustrated]

@@miles11we I’ve been practicing my free hand skills on my Swiss Army knives and it’s been working really nicely. I won’t try it on my higher end benchmades just yet though.

[@miles11we]

@TheIamfrustrated oh your talking normal knives, yeah freehand sharpening knives is crazy hard, for me at least. The bevels are so small it's impossible to go by feel, unless it's like a scandi grind or something. My carving knives have pretty big bevels compared to a normal folding knife, so I can still rock it and feel where the angle is. Rn I'm sharpening some little chip carving knives I made and the bevels are like 1/2" wide lol

[@TheIamfrustrated]

@@miles11we I have sharpened chisels both free hand and on the Edge Pro. It’s good either way but certainly easier on the Edge Pro. I tend to favour edge pro these days as my grits I can service range from 80 to 50,000. Is the 50,000 necessary? Oh absolutely not but I won’t give it up now that I have it.

[@imaginereshio7090]

very satisfying voice lol

[@jondoty]

Thank you! This must have been my problem when I bought a diamond plate and couldn’t get my chisel sharp. I was doing it freehand. I assumed I had pushed too hard and rubbed all the diamond off.

[@PrototypePlatform]

pro tip: you should always sharpen a chisel a second time at an extra 3-5° angle so you have a very very slight chamfer on the tip, this stops the tool from getting massive dents in the edge, and also increases the sharpness, and helps wood fibres split easier on entry.

[@boreoff]

Thanks for the tip - I did try secondary bevels for a bit and just found it too cumbersome but yeah there are advantages for sure …best

[@Fishlord136]

A wee jaggy burr 💀

[@brewski0277]

First time using chisels I free hand sharpened them with whetstones and I got it hair shaving sharp, wasn’t super hard, I didn’t mess it up either, just take it slow and be careful

[@XwaYdesu]

That's great that your brain allows you to pull off such a feat. I did until a brain injury. Turns out, the former credit wasn't mine. I could go through all the same steps and time I took to learn to sharpen a knife, and still fail to be able to do it. But without the brain functioning in a way that allows it, it won't happen on its own.

[@Grover91]

Do an audiobook on woodwork. Please. I could listen to your dulcet tones on repeat.

[@FilthyFloor]

I know im not as experienced as you, but id recommend using a wider area of the stone, so you don't have as much concavity after each sharpening

[@custom-furniture]

it's a diamond not a water or arkansas stone so no need

[@anonymousaccordionist3326]

This is great advice for using something like a whetstone, so good on you in that manner, but for diamond plates it's not an issue. They don't abrade in the same manner.

[@jamesharris5156]

@@custom-furnitureIt will still wear down. Especially if he’s using water on it. Don’t use water if it’s not a whetstone. The water will get into the microscopic pores, cause rust, and make your diamonds fall off. Use glass cleaner like windex or alcohol.

[@boreoff]

Good point I use glass cleaner…

[@FilthyFloor]

Thanks for correcting me, I was not aware that it was diamond.

[@BlueWolff22]

You should clean the metal filings from your stone it can clog it up and make it harder to sharpen or tarnish the finished product.

[@No_Lucks_Given]

I never thought that using wood like that to de-burr would work but a strop would be so much better.

[@Glogalog]

Free hand sharpening a chisel is super easy.

[@EnderCrowYT]

This how that one dude with the chiseled chin shaves

[@spudpud-T67]

A Scotch sharpen: just push harder.

[@gav2759]

Flatten the back ma'man. That's only half the job.

[@boreoff]

Most decent chisels nowadays come with the back flat unlike in the old days where yes that was necessary…cheers

[@bradyritter2193]

not necessarily. Think of a knife, when you cut with it both sides of the blade need to be sharpened. In order to hone the edge of a chisel both sides need to be sharpened.

[@spudpud-T67]

@@boreoff If it's a mirror yes. I've never seen one yet come polished off the shelf.

[@jonathanluzgonzalez7510]

Nice Kilt mate

[@Tvngsten]

Good old tradition of keeping a -sgian dubh- chisel in your sock

[@zanderchiasson8064]

You should use something like windex instead of water for your stones, it’ll dry faster and help reduce rusting on the plates

[@boreoff]

Yes I use that too, cheers

[@-INSERT_FUNNY_HERE-]

I won’t lie, I was not expecting the kilt. It’s cool, I just wasn’t expecting it

[@satis_btc]

instead of water I would use kerosene (no need to grease it again), it's always better to go over it 6 times on the edge and then 3 times on the flat side, not just on one, and to remove the burr I would use abrasive paste... (at least that's how they teach us at school)

[@OmerKing916]

I can't be the only one that thought that he was Taking off the pins of a CPU.

[@terra2745]

Ive been a woodworker for years, never seen any of the tools there beaides the chisel Woodworking is not hard or fancy or expensive, people make it

[@disgustedluigi]

I was amazed when he said it was backlit, but it’s only edge lit

[@vedqiibyol]

I would use another holder, can clearly see that the chisel is only being shaprned on a third of the stone, This will greatly reduce it's lifespan because the middle is still always used and there is plenty of material on the sides. Lukily this is a diamond coated stone, so it should't erode like natural whetstones....

[@Laroete]

Removing the burr like that dulled the chisel, you need to work it with a leather belt back andd forth until u cant feel it anymore

[@susannluckmann7705]

What was it about? That kilt took all my attention away 😊👍👍

[@Coastal_Cruzer]

You can make one of these with threaded rod, wood nuts, a washer, a dowel, and a small cut of wood. Total comes out to less than $10 if you have the wood already

[@steveeymann6374]

The total doesn't come to much more if you buy a proper one. It won't take time to make or be made of wood that can flex and swell preventing precise repetition.

[@Coastal_Cruzer]

@@steveeymann6374 how much does a proper one cost because I spent all of $2.50 on the fasteners and found the wood for free

[@rnjesus9950]

After shaving hair you sure slid that down your sock with confidence.

[@boreoff]

Good catch 😎/ yeah as you noticed no matter how carefully that is done it will cut your shin as too sharp. It was placed carefully first and I filmed the chisel sliding out/ then reversed the clip in the edit …all smoke and mirrors 👍thanks for watching cheers

[@GardenNomme]

Lotion my brother

[@OldNavajoTricks]

Keener than a wifies tongue after the pubs kick oot :-D

[@owaind-g678]

Wrong angle for that chisel, try 25 - 20 for the grind and hone the tip a couple degrees extra so you're only sharpening a small part at the end, should only need to sharpen a few mm for the working edge, makes the chisel last longer.

[@boreoff]

Hi, the angle will depend on the type of work I am doing and yes sometimes I will regrind and go lower even to 20. I gave up on secondary bevels for chisels for various reasons but appreciate that some folks like yourself will do this for your own good reasons...cheers

[@owaind-g678]

@@boreoff Yeah you are right the angle depends on the work your doing, for pairing off and fine work i like a fine angle but heavy work i do have some chisels at 30. I touch up my chisels alot while im working so the micro bevel helps me put an edge without setting up the guide every time, i can find the angle of the grind then lift the chisel slightly and put a nice edge on it. I find a leather strop helps alot getting it razor sharp, takes the burr off and polishes the edge. thanks for your videos, you do nice work, We all learn from each other.

[@boreoff]

thanks, yes so true - the internet is great for sharing knowledge... - I use a strop for more detailed work like you...cheers

[@custom-furniture]

ha ha very good - great kilt by the way - what tartan?

[@boreoff]

thanks - Flower of Scotland tartan, cheers

[@SUPERMAR10312]

Typically water isn't used on Diamond Stones it causes the steel underneath to rust

[@bksensei2553]

Never be ashamed to use a "training wheels" device. Getting the best job done with help is better than the pride of doing a lower quality job by yourself.

[@acousticCovers4476]

My name is doctor Glenn Pierce

[@Skeelful]

Don't use water or that diamond stone will clog with rust. Use lubricant oil.

[@boreoff]

I wash them down after use and stand up to dry - I use windex or glass cleaner sometimes too but I mainly try not to get too bogged down on methods as I am always keen to get back to working wood 😎cheers

[@ionutfelicitari9328]

Dont use water on a diamond stone, use a residue free solvent like alcohol to clean it

[@killas6097]

You eventually get good enough to free hand all sharpening

[@MartinFinnerup]

That voice... Is Scott Manley doing woodworking now?

[@Nave6W]

I sharpened my chisel on a 8$ two sided junk sharpening stone from a sporting goods store..

[@boreoff]

Awesome 😎

[@sofabored2150]

You sound like the narrator for Superliminal.

[@robbiekastengren3651]

I've never seen someone remove a burr with endgrain 🤔 Interesting!

[@miles11we]

I abrade mine on stone instead of trying to break or rip them off. But I'm using 8k so the burr is small and orients itself toward the back of the chisel when you are sharpening the bevel, so you just very carefully (so you don't bend it back toward the bevel) start working the back of the chisel and you can feel it get abraded away in a few swipes.

[@pablozurita2996]

You should use a leather strop to remove the burr

[@Lenny_aintit]

You kinda sound like Dr. Glenn Pierce from a game called Superliminal lol :))

[@psychoskwurl]

Yeah, those are fairly standard now.

[@miles11we]

Get a pocket microscope, i use a 100-250x. They are like $20 and make sharpening a piece of cake cause you can see exactly what is going on instead of guessing by how something feels or how it cuts hair. For me it saves a ton of time. Wanna know what your edge looks like when you break off a burr?

[@custom-furniture]

interesting, never seen that...

[@violentfrog_]

so this short is just about the most basic initial bevel sharpening? woodworkers know this already (for resetting initial bevel) and for anyone else it will encourage using this every time which takes too much time and effort to breed good touch up habits

[@Coastal_Cruzer]

How are people supposed to know stuff if they don't learn?

[@thor9517]

I sharpen with hands and it shaves easy. It just needs some patience.

[@gavinotheshitpostartist5586]

You sound like Doctor Glenn Pierce from Superliminal

[@kc8485]

Convert your chisel to a Sgian Dubh or Scian Dubh (Gaelic) - Pronounced Skee-nn douu /Skee-nn dove (Gaelic)

[@kingcottoncandy]

Do you remember where you got the diamond stone by any chance? Mine are so used they dont even work anymore,plus handheld is difficult for me to use

[@boreoff]

Axminster in the UK, cheers

[@Sqe3zy]

You sound like Doctor Glen Peirce

[@caleballen7959]

Free handing is just fine you just need practice plz don’t say it will lead to whatever bc that can mislead someone who could having a better time with freehanding off the rip rather than a guide just inform ppl the options maybe not tell them the ways they should go about something it’s about comfort and technique

[@ffsrdr6596]

I get my chisel sharp enough to cut hair on the flat side and the angle side

[@Oleg_K.]

I have a beginner question - how does the honing guide angle not change if it's rubbing up against the sharpening stone? How come the stone doesn't wear out the part of the guide that's touching it while sharpening?

[@boreoff]

This is just not an issue - theoretically maybe but so miniscule....eventually after a long time the guide would wear out but not an issue again...don't worry about that...cheers

[@bushratbeachbum]

So what guide is it and what diamond stone is it?

[@truffleshuffl]

Just practice a bit more, you stop rolling over, the trick is to go as slowly as needed 👌

[@oncrei]

No stroke against the sharp edge is allowed when sharpening. Trust me, I've Seen it under a microscope.

[@boreoff]

That’s interesting why is that?

[@oncrei]

@@boreoff the sandpaper as smooth as it might look and feel is still sharp little particles bound to a paper back with adhesive. The particles need a pressure to micro-scratch the material and take small amounts of it. When you go against the edge the edge is basically shaving off all the particles that are slightly taller than the rest, and they only contact this edge and they round it up and dull it. Try it yourself, if you sharpen always away from the edge and compare it with against the sharp edge and look at it with a good magnifying glass, you should be able to see it.

[@0li07]

Those subtitles are completely broken

[@AntoniaBojian]

Only correct title is How to coffee

[@bulasturubula3660]

I just wondered to myself : would it be worth to use "purified" water ? that would hold no minerals, for sharpening ? Considering it's super cheap anyway ?

[@tallish_human]

Why does he sound like the doctor from superliminal

[@626F62]

1 those angles are not great, they can still slip, often chisels are not straight up the length so it can hold them wonky and slip. 2 once you have the burr put the flat side flat on the whetstone and and rub it back and forth pressind down to keep it flat. then do the bevel again and the flat side again on a higher grit. 3 strop on leather

[@dragonthibodeau419]

To be fair no it doesn't 😂 as you grind away the first contact point of reference it changes while the second one , the roller remains the same and continues to hold it's measurement of distance over all this means that as you bring you will constantly be changing the angle as the roller will stay the same creating a bit of a lever or fulcrum so to say the chisel will not be any better off then if you'd just learned how to properly sharpen it

[@Coastal_Cruzer]

Nope. It grinds a flat

[@dragonthibodeau419]

@Coastal_Cruzer no simple physics disagrees with that . As material is removed from one side the angle changes . Try to picture it scaled up let's say you put a chair with four legs on tread mill . The back two legs have wheels the front two do not , the tread mill is coarse like sand paper, we will say that you check level at the start , as this expirament goes on you will see that material is being removed from the front two legs making them shorter , where as the wheels on the back two legs allow for them to role over the gritty surface and not loose and length on the two back legs . After a bit you check level again and the angle has changed because the surface that was being ground is no longer reliably where it started in fact that the contact point that originally made it level is actually not even there any more it's been worn away altogether

[@simonpeterhutchinson]

Where did you get the diamond sharpening blocks?

[@boreoff]

For Europe try Axminster Tools cheers

[@Wall-knight]

I’ve used a spoon for years without sharpening, what’s the difference

[@chrispycream7748]

If only he stropped it 😭

[@burnout7832]

Why does he sound like the guy from superliminal

[@steveeymann6374]

Honing guides work great. Just never use sandpaper. It does a crap job and doesnt last. If you're using chisels enough to need to sharpen them then you are doing work that will allow you to invest in some proper stones. If not. You probably shouldn't be using them because youre not using them properly.

[@jessicaflett1992]

Where can i find one of those?